Other Fruit Spirits Flashcards
Location- Other Fruit Spirits
Mainly central Europe with use of stone fruits or wild berries
Definition- Other Fruit Spirits
- Brandy: spirit made from fruit juice or fruit pulp or skin.
- Grape brandy: made from fermented grape juice (≠ pulp/skin)
- Pomace brandy: made from pressed grape pulp, skins & stems left after wine made
- Fruit brandy: all brandies made from fermenting fruit other than grapes (≠ fruit flavoured brandy)
- Eau de vie: colourless fruit brandy
Raw Material and Fermentation- Other Fruit Spirits
100kg fruits => 5l of alcohol => 10l of fruit spirit
Key to use ripe untainted fruits
Stone fruits
- Fermented into fruit wine (enough sugar)
- Use/not of stones for almond notes (e.g. Kirsch)
- Wild/natural yeasts for 2-4 wks fermentation
=> ‘wine’ around 5% abv
- EU: no addition of sugar allowed
Soft fruits
- Macerated in neutral alcohol (lower in sugar)
EU: no addition of sugar
Distillation- Other Fruit Spirits
- Continuous or discontinuous
- Potential use of ‘bain marie’ with lower temperatures for better retention of aromatics.
Ageing- Other Fruit Spirits
- No ageing but can be put in glass jars to mellow spirit esp. stone fruit to help esterification
- If wood aged, ash wood (less aggressive vs. oak)
Any fruit can be used to….
Make a spirit, and fruit distillates are made throughout the world
What are fruit spirits known as in France and Germany?
France- Eau de Vie
Germany- Wasser or Geist
Fruits that can be used for fruit spirits?
A large number of different fruits are used to make these spirits, and they can be divided into three main classes of fruit: pip fruits, stone fruits and berries/ soft fruits. The most well- known pip fruit that is used is Williams Pear. Other examples include apples and quince. Of the stone fruits, plums (in particular, Mirabelle and Quetsch) and cherries (Kirsch) are the best known. Of note among the wide array of berries and soft fruits used are raspberries and strawberries.
Fermentation for fruit spirits
Fruit is crushed and then a cultured yeast is added to start the ferment. The alcohol produced here is around 5% ABV. An important choice for the stone fruits is whether to ferment with stones or not (stones impart a distinct aroma). The stones need to be left uncrushed otherwise the aroma they give the spirit can be overwhelming. The stones are usually removed prior to distillation.
Maceration is another technique for fruit spirits…
Some berries and soft fruits can be macerated in neutral alcohol diluted with water, rather than fermented. This is an option that is used for fruits that are expensive or in short supply. The juice from these fruits could be fermented, and distillates that are made from the same fruit taste different if they are fermented rather than macerated. For example, raspberries that are macerated and then distilled produce a spirit that is more intensely fruity than one made from fermented raspberry juice.
Distillation- Fruit Spirits
Fruit spirits use a double- pot still. Some producers use a still with a short rectifying column. The reflux that is produced results in a spirit that is lighter in style. Regardless of the type of still used, producers tend to collect their spirit at a high strength in order to capture the most fragrant, volatile aromatics but these spirits may not be distilled to a strength higher that 86% ABV.
Maturation- Fruit Spirits
Not usually aged, but some distillers “dull” the spirit a bit. This is done in either glass jars or stainless steel. This is used a lot for stone fruit spirits. Soft fruit spirits are usually bottled earlier. If wood aged is practiced it is usually done in Ash instead of more “assertive” oak. The downside to this is ash has high evaporation levels.
